


Progression of Life and Death

by Dead_Damme



Category: Dead by Daylight (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Gen, Torture, bit of a slowburn, comfort snogs and cuddles
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-24
Updated: 2017-11-24
Packaged: 2019-02-06 06:14:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 20,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12811398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dead_Damme/pseuds/Dead_Damme
Summary: Just a headsup, Maya can be a crybaby when caught on the spot for emotional stuff, but can keep her cool during the trials. She mostly tries to ignore difficult situations with some humor though.If that sounds bad to you, this fic is probably not your thing.





	1. "Who are  you?"

Gender: Female  
Role: Adapting Wreck  
Ethnicity: Dutch

\---

  
When her parents finally agreed to let her study her last year of college abroad, Maya couldn't be more happy.  
Having spent years of living with her overprotective parents, who after the death of her older sister only smothered her more, she would finally be able to taste freedom.  
The plan originally was to go to England, to 'stay close', but in some twist of fate she was administered in a school of the same name in America. Together with her emotional support dog, Engels found a tiny apartment at the outskirts of a forest that was supposedly haunted.  
  
Being away from the constraints of a crowd that was full of expectations, Maya stumbled but blossomed into someone who was more perceptive than most; she picked up things quickly, in- and outside of her studies. Her weakness was being in the spotlight or the middle of attention, but otherwise Engels worked well under pressure.  
  
One faithful night when walking her trusty dog in the woods behind her apartment, Maya would not be found at school again the next day.  
In the darkness of the Entity's realm, Maya will have to adapt and find a way to not crack under the pressure.  
  
  
Maya's perks are progress based, be it good or bad. She can become the center of attention when under great stress, or become invisible for a short time if everything goes well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a headsup, Maya can be a crybaby when caught on the spot for emotional stuff, but can keep her cool during the trials. She mostly tries to ignore difficult situations with some humor though.  
> If that sounds bad to you, this fic is probably not your thing.


	2. The first trial

“You’re being weird.” I tugged at my dog’s leash as she tried to squirm out of it.  
She was usually antsy to go home at the last walk of the day, but right now something seemed off -- like she was trying to run from something.  
“C’mon, just do your business and we’re outta here.” I encouraged her, looking around.

 

The patch of trees behind my house could barely be called a forest, but it always felt like the fastest and safest way to walk my dog after 11 PM. It had been for the entirety I lived here, after all. Though, with her acting all in a tizzy, I started getting nervous myself.  
I reached down to try and pet some of her anxiety away, but she took the chance to tackle me, ultimately making me tumble and release her.  
She ran off.

 

“Hey, wait!” I took off after her, clumsily tripping over roots, but slowly gaining ground.  
She was heading for the house and I felt a bit of relief wash over me; at least she wasn’t heading for the streets.  
In that small moment of lost focus, however, my foot was hooked by one of the more upstanding roots, and I fell. 

My arms still at my side from running, and my reflexes weakened from a long day of moving about, I closed my eyes and braced myself, though it did not stop the air escaping from my lungs.

My face scrunched up in the small bit of pain and I gasped for air, my eyes still closed. I took a moment to let out a groan of frustration before forcing myself up, looking at the ground as I did -- I silently cursed my dog for this night time action.

 

I looked up and half expected her to come back running, tail wagging and ready to ambush me with kisses, but I wasn’t even greeted by the sight of my house in the distance. Instead, I was looking at... stacks of tires? 

Confused, I stood up and did a retake on my surroundings, realizing I was no longer in the same place.  
Rusted walls of crushed autoparts were all over, together with some old cars that had lost their function, judging from the dented metals and lack of tires.

 

_So, an old car junkyard?_

 

I could see some poles with strange hooks on them around as well, but I had no idea of their function.   
On my left there was a shack with some lit-up sign on top. Judging from the run-down state of it, it might have had a function at some point, an office, perhaps.

Tense and unsure of what to do next, I went towards the office, which was easily accessible from its lack of doors or windows.  
As expected, there was next to nothing in it. A couple of lockers and a table flipped on its side. Inside the locker wall a set of 3 hatchets were mounted.

 

My insides churned with unease upon realizing I wouldn’t get anywhere by staying here.  
Before I could move, however, my ears picked up a faint humming that seemed to be getting closer by the second.

On edge by the unfamiliar tune, I got the urge to hide away from it rather than finding out the owner -- whoever kept weapons in their closet like that were probably not happy by seeing a stranger on their property. 

The humming was uncomfortably close now, and at the last second I decided to get into the locker and close the door.

The source of the sound finally stepped into the room and from the faint slits in the locker I could make out a woman carrying an axe.  
Just as concerning as the axe was she was carrying, she was wearing a bloodied bunny mask to cover up the top side of her face.  
I silently sucked in my breath as my heart hammered in my chest. Whoever this was, I had an incredible bad feeling about her.

She took two long steps towards me and opened the locker next to mine, examining the hatchets inside before grabbing a few and storing them in the loops of her belt, all the while keeping up the deranged humming, which’ melody she sped up at some point.

 My muscles stiffened at how close she’d moved, but not a second later she made for the exit with long strides.  
I waited a little longer for the humming to fade further into the distance before I felt safe enough to exit the locker.

 

_Well shit, what do I do now?_

 

I zipped up my hoodie as if to hide in its warmth, I was only in my PJs underneath it after all, but the comfort was only short lived as I realized I had to find a way out of here.

On closer inspection, the walls surrounding this place were too high to even attempt climbing over. But.. a place like this had to have an entrance and exit somewhere, right?  
  
With this thought I started my search. In the not so far distance, a light switched on and for a moment I was hopeful that the woman from before was well out of reach. I took off into a sprint, sure that she wasn’t able to notice me right away.

 

My run was quickly interrupted when someone jumped from between the walls of junk and acted as my personal brake.  
He grabbed my upper arms as soon as I bumped into him, his demeanor even more high-strung than mine -- then, his eyes relaxed somewhat.  
He let go off me, but didn’t break eye-contact, beckoning me with his head to follow him.

 I didn’t know anything of who he was or where we were, but if I had to choose between him and the woman from earlier, I felt my safest bet was staying with him.

 I gave a slight nod of my head, and he started to walk off to somewhere. I followed suit.

 

I couldn’t help but notice the dirt build-up on the man’s green jacket and tan cargo pants, like he hadn’t washed his clothes in forever. Thinking back on his face it didn’t look like it was one of his main worries, though.  
He stopped at a machine - some kind of generator by the looks of it - and stuck his hands in it.

 

“Help if you can. Otherwise, watch.” his voice but a whisper as he messed around with the gears of the machine.  
Aside from soldering small mod-chips into consoles to allow gameplay recordings and such, I had next to no idea how machines ticked, so I watched him work.

 His gloved hands moved on from moving the gears to work on some cut pieces of wire, creating the tiniest of sparks as he touched them together. 

Further away from us, two more lights started illuminating the area. Taking a step back from watching the man to see the sources, I notice the lights were probably coming from generators like this one.

 

Just as I began to wonder why the man would be working on such a task, a blood-curling scream sounded through the area. I flinched at the sound, looking worriedly at the man next to me. He sighed and frowned, looking from the generator to me.  
“Try and get this to work. I’ll save her.” He stood up and nudged me towards the generator. I gave him a confused look to which he sighed again. “Just do it. I’ll explain later.”  
He turned and left, leaving no room for me to argue.

_What did he mean by ‘save her’? What was going on here? And why was it so important to get this generator to work?_

 With no one to answer my questions, I turned to the generator, gingerly sticking my fingers into the mechanism. I fiddled with the gears that had been worked on before, and noticed that despite their rusty looks, were able to move. The springs inside however, were not giving in so easily.

I pushed down on them, ultimately just jerking around when it suddenly turned inexplicably hot. I managed to get my hand out just in time when a small explosion sounded from the machine, emitting a small flash.

 

 _Shit_.

 

When I was able to look at the insides again, some of the other parts have sprung out of place, setting back the progress of repairing it slightly. I looked around as if it mattered that someone noticed my mistake, but didn’t sense anyone around.

 I took a breath and shook off the embarrassment of failure to do my best to put everything back into order; somehow actually managing to make more parts work as I was at it.  
When everything seemed to be able to move, I took the wires and mimicked the man’s action from before, touching them together.

 

The generator roared to life, and I sheepishly grinned as I took pride in taking part of making it function again. 

My moment was short-lived however, as my ears were suddenly filled with the deranged melody from before, followed by a chuckle.  
I turn around and see the lady with an axe staring me down, rising her weapon to strike.

 Terrified, I take off running but am unable to dodge the blade that slices my arm open. I cry out and run even faster, though the adrenaline rush does not last long.

 In the distance through the mist, I see the man from before working on another generator with two others, and I feel a bit of hope despite still not knowing why it’s so important that they get repaired.

 

One of them sees me heading for them and comes running towards me -- a burly looking guy that pretty much seems ready to pounce me, but instead puts himself in-between me and the axe bearer. I turn around, clutching my bloodied arm, and see him get hit with one of the hatchets I’d seen before.

Right at the same time, the generator the others had been working on burst to life and a siren is heard.

“That’s right! We’re gonna live forever, lads!” the bloke from before announces as he runs off. I turn back around and see the others rushing off to somewhere as well. Not wanting to be left behind with the giant woman, I take off after them. Not that I had to be worried about her, as she seemed to have taken chase after the man who took a hit for me.

 We get to what I can only suspect to be the exit gates, one of them pulling desperately at the switch to open them.

 The woman who I had not yet met approaches me slowly and reaches out to my arm. She pulls open her medkit and takes out some neatly rolled bandages.

She works on my arm in silence, and I take a moment to look at her. Her clothes like the others are dirty, and she seems a lot more nervous than the two men. She’s a bit taller than me and sports dreads and glasses.

She gives a bit of an awkward smile as she finishes up bandaging my arm. It still stings uncontrollably but most of the pain actually seem to have faded.

 At that moment, the exit gates open, pulling my attention away from my wound.

It slides open with a loud noise, and at the same time the man who’d protected me comes sprinting towards us, desperately clinging to his side. Behind him is the lady, whose humming has become more irate. She raises her axe and misses him by a hair.

 The rest of us break into a run with the other man, and we somehow make it out alive.

 

\---

 

At some point we got to a campfire in the middle of a clearing in a forest and came to a full stop.  
The girl tried to take a look at the bigger of the two men, but he brushed her away, “Don’t mither, Claudette. I’ll be fine, I will, yeah?”  
 He pats her shoulder in thanks and plops down next to one of the tree trunks. Claudette looks into the campfire, a bit dejected from the man’s reaction it seems.  
 Next to me, the other man sighs. “You holding up okay?”  
 I look at him to notice he’s speaking to me.

All the questions I’ve thought of during that nightmare came spilling back and suddenly it’s hard to speak. Finally, I give a small nod as answer.

 He must have noticed my internal struggle, because next thing I know his hand is on my back, guiding me to sit down with them by the fire.

 

“Dwight is a lot better at this than me but here. It’s a journal that pretty much explains what’s happening to you - to all of us - right now.”  
He conjures a tattered notebook from behind one of the makeshift benches and hands it to me.

“This your first time then? Thought as much.” the injured man speaks up and grunts as he adjusts his position. “You’re a damned idiot runnin’ from t’Huntress in a straight line like that.”

 I’m having trouble coming up with a response right away that isn’t downright me calling him an asshole; he did save me from that hatchet after all, but the way he’s acting it’s making it hard for me to express gratitude for that.

“Don’t be a dick, David.” someone walking towards us calls him out, clutching her arm close. There’s others following in her shadow.

“Just statin’ the facts, Nea,” David starts but is cut off from saying more by another person joining the campfire.

“Your talents aren’t with your way with words, big guy.” A small Asian girl stretches before plopping down next to him, a defiant look on her face like she’s challenging him to say she’s wrong.

From the looks of it, they’ve done this song and dance before, because David groans loudly and smacks the trunk with the arm that isn’t holding his side. He hisses at the impact but stays silent otherwise.

 

A redhead with braids tosses something that looks like a toolbox aside, and joins us as well.  
Lastly, or so it appears, another man approaches the group of lively people.  
I look around at them and finally find my voice.

“What _the hell_ is going on here?”

The last man to join adjusts his glasses and puts a hand on my shoulder. “I’m Dwight, what’s your name?” 

“That’s--” answering that doesn’t answer my question, but I was never raised to shut down pleasantries either.  
I sigh, “I’m Maya.”

 He gives my shoulder a slight squeeze and lets go of it, sitting down next to me. 

“Maya… This is going to be hard to accept, but try to keep an open mind, okay?”  
He rubs his hands nervously together and I can’t do much else than nod at his request.

 He sighs, maybe relieved that I’m willing to listen, or maybe to use that time to collect his thoughts.

 “You’re… in a nightmare. We all are. Though it’s very much real.” he points at the journal I’m still holding, “‘ _Death is not death. Int this place, life is fleeting._ ’ This is our lives now. We’re unable to escape from this place yet. We don’t know how. That journal explains most of the things you’ll find here though.”

I shake my head, unable to comprehend the information I’m given. 

“But I was home. I was walking my dog and next thing I know, I’m here, being chased by this... This ‘Huntress’!”

They all share a look, one I cannot identify properly, and vaguely shrug.  
 “I was out for a jog,” the redhead pipes up to fill the silence. Nea raises her arm “I was tagging a building,” Claudette meekly added, “I got lost in the woods.”  
Their stories were as unlikely as my own.

 

I burrowed my head in my hands, frustrated at the situation and not really believing it either.  
The man I’d met first finally spoke up again; had he not, I would have thought he wasn’t here anymore.

“Believe it or not, you’re stuck here with us.”

Even if I wasn’t looking at him, I knew he was staring me down.  
It was as if they all wanted me to just give into their words already and get it over with. If I could read any kind of situation, it were the ones where people wanted me to accept things blindly.

 

I took a deep breath and looked up at them.  
“Okay, fine.”  I say, though not entirely convinced myself. “If that’s the case, tell me your names then.” 

The group makes the rounds to introduce themselves, even the ones I already learned their names from.   
“We’re still missing a few more people, though they should be here at some point.” Dwight added when the introductions were over with.

 

“Speak of the devils…” David nudged his head towards the last people that were in the same boat as us.

I was surprised to see two older men in the mix as well; I was almost convincing myself this was some elaborate prank by some 20-somethings, but seeing some people outside the age-range that seemed to be overtaking the majority of the group was somehow comforting.

 The one with shades had something of a smile on his face, something unlike the worried faces and David’s smug mug so far. The other dressed like a veteran. Maybe he was. He had a face that had seen too much bullshit already but was still forced to deal with it.  
The other two were a boy who looked drowsy and probably hadn’t slept in forever, and a girl who looked as high-strung as I felt.

The one with shades noticed me first, “Oh? Who might this lovely lady be?”  he took his cap and put it to his chest, making a little bow in greeting.

 “.. Maya.”

 I stupidly got an anxious feeling when I noticed I was the center of attention with all of these people.  
 “Ace Visconti, a pleasure.” the man said smoothly and put his hat back on.  
“Bill.” the veteran introduced himself.  
“I’m Laurie and this is Quentin.” the last two were introduced. Quentin raised a hand in greeting which I returned with a nod.

 

Silence fell over us and I turned my attention to the notebook that was put in my possession.

 

‘Property of Benedict Baker’, it read with thick marker penning.  
I flipped it open to an introduction of sorts, together with a plea to bury the owner’s body should it been found -- a great opening to a thriller, didn’t it feel so… real? Was this real?  
I touch the bandages on my arm unconsciously and press down.  
A stinging pain runs through me, one that can’t be anything but real.

 I frown and look up, noticing that everyone’s settled down somewhere.

 On my left is Dwight still, looking slightly embarrassed to be caught looking at me, but only looking away briefly before acting like he was looking at the journal the whole time.  
On my right the smooth talking elder settled down, playing with the rim of his cap a bit before abruptly looking up to me.

“Who was your first?”  
“First…?”  
“You know...” he adds with a motion of his finger across his neck, “who tried to kill you?”

“She was with us and the Huntress, mate!” David shouts louder than necessary from the other end of the fire.

Ignoring David’s attempt to join the conversation but carrying on with it, Ace shoots a grin at me.  
“She’s awful, sorry that you had to see the only Killer that can still kill you once you have a good distance on her as your first.”

 

A dreadful realization dawns on me. “How many ‘Killers’ are there?”  
Ace taps the journal.  
“It’s all documented in here. I want to say 10? There might be more.”  
I rub my face and look at the journal again.

“And those.. hunts are a common thing?”  
“Afraid so.”  
“Just my luck...”

 That gets a chuckle from the older man as he leans over. “Don’t worry, I’m the luckiest man here, I’ll make sure to rub some of that off on you.”  
I can make out a wink behind his shades and I muster a bit of a smile.  
“Oh my, mister Visconti!” I joke with a hand to my heart in a faked offense, slightly leaning away from him, “at least buy me dinner first!”  
I win a few short laughs from those who had been listening in, including the man in offense.

I feel a little silly to joke around, especially with such a corny joke, but it seemed appreciated.  
Still, I feel more awkward than comfortable despite the efforts at small-talk. Not to mention, really tired.

I tap the journal a few times, selecting the words in my head before I speak,

“By the way.. Where can I sleep?” I motion at my outfit with focus on the loose, plaid-patterned bottoms I’m wearing, “I was kind of ready to head for bed before…”  
Before all this.

Before another silence can fall, Dwight stands up and offers me his hand to pull me up.  
He leads me to a bit away from the clearing, close enough to still see the campfire, but far enough to not really hear everyone’s voice anymore.

It isn’t much, but there are big branches acting like tents I hadn’t noticed before. Inside some of the ‘tents’ are sets of extra clothing. Some have more than others. Some have none.

 “It isn’t the most comfortable, but it’s what we have.”

 I shrug vaguely, trying my best to act positive. “Better than nothing. Though… the numbers…”  
Looking back to the others, it didn’t actually seem like there was enough place for all of us.

“You can also sleep at the campfire. This is more an assigned space for a bit more silence.” Dwight explains, crouching down at one of the larger piles of clothing.  
“If you want.. You can have my space for now. I know these shirts aren’t much of a pillow, but..” he trails off, looking uncomfortable.

 “It’s the closest thing to a bed I can get, right?” I squat down next to him, trying my best not to make a comment on the state of the shirts -- everything here was dirty.  
“Thanks, Dwight. Though what about you?”

He takes a breath and smiles, “Don’t worry about me.”  
I take him in; he looks tired as well, and his legs are shaking somewhat in the position he’s sitting.  
I shake my head.

“Actually, can I have, like, two of these shirts? I’ve done a lot of camping so I’m used to rough terrain.”    
That’s a lie, actually, but he doesn’t know that.

He tries to hide it, but I can see the brief flash of relief on his face. He carefully selects the two cleanest looking ones, though that doesn’t say much, and hands them to me.  
I smile at him in appreciation and lie down on the spot.

“You still have room like this, right?” I make sure, and he looks a little surprised. “Uh-uhm yeah. I mean, no, you can have the whole space.”  
“Don’t be daft. This is bigger than a King’s size, and you’re shaking on your feet. You need proper rest.”

 He looks back at the campfire, as if to gauge the other’s reactions, but when he notices they aren’t even paying attention to us anymore, he nods and lies down a respectable distance next to me.

 He notices the error that we’re lying face to face a little too late, but I’m already ‘fluffing up’ my t-shirts and turning away from him.

 Uncertain of whether it’s unusual for them or not, I take one last glance at him over my shoulder.

 “Goodnight…?” the word comes out more like a question than a statement.

 His eyes are already closed, his glasses in his breast pocket, but I can make out a small smile as he responds.

 

“... Goodnight, Maya.”


	3. Calm before the Storm

After a few hours, I was awake again.  
In my sleep I'd turned right back round again to face Dwight, but he still seemed to be sound asleep by the looks of it.  
  
As quietly as I could, I got up. A few people were in the sheltered area too now; It took a moment to recall their names, but it seemed to be David, Laurie, Claudette and Bill. Nearby, Nea seemed to have fallen asleep against one of the trees.  
  
I grabbed the notebook and on my tippy toes made my way to the fire, where most of the others were. From my count from yesterday however, I was still missing a few.  
Ace was awake and prodding at the fire with a stick when he noticed me coming over.  
  
"Hey," he whispered in greeting, mindful not to wake the few sleeping around the campfire.  
  
I gave a nod and sat down close to him.  
"Sleep well?"  
  
I shrugged vaguely and thumbed the notebook in my hands.  
"Okay, I guess."  
There were tons of questions that made going to sleep tougher than I imagined.  
I'd hoped that when I woke up everything would be normal, but here I was again, together with these strangers in the same situation.  
  
Ace smiled sadly at me, probably guessing my thoughts right now.  
"We'll figure it out, somehow." He consoled me, though his words sounded empty. How long had they been here for? How many people were before us, how many were gonna follow?  
  
I muttered a silent thanks and opened Benedict's journal, ready to do my homework on this place.  
There weren't too many entries by the looks of it; some were accompanied by drawings though.  
  
Whoever this Baker guy was, he seemed more the artistic type than the survival type. Perhaps that's why he kept this journal going during his time here; to keep some part of his old life.  
  
Time passed by as I caught up to this place's lore, and it wasn't long before others were waking up, or simply just joining us after spending some time in the woods.  
  
Getting the gist of most of the journal's entries, I closed the booklet and turned my attention to the people around me.  
I wasn't sure what to expect from this time outside the trials, but I sure wasn't expecting them to sit down around the fire and munch on whatever they apparently found in the forest.  
  
I was offered an apple and some berries by Jake, who was apparently used to living in the woods before he got here and knew where to find edibles around this place.  
  
While we were eating, there was still one thing on my mind, "I just..." I started, but something made me stop. These kind of moments must be rare enough for them, these small bits of peace where there are no killers hunting us down - who was I to disturb that?  
I shook my head and shoved the handful of berries in my mouth.  
Dwight nodded slightly at me in acknowledgement, mouthing the word ' later' at me before returning to his own meal.  
  
Come to think of it, didn't Jake mention that Dwight was ' better at' explaining stuff?  
And despite the somewhat nervous attitude he seemed to be the one others looked to for some sort of guidance and leadership. He wouldn't be the one I figured to be the type, but looking around, it might be for the best that someone with an understanding personality like him would be appointed leader. Then again, I wasn't sure if I wanted to weigh down on him more.  
  
We finished our meal in mostly silence, though Feng made sure to more than once point out to me that I had fruit juice on my face.  
A feisty one, that. Probably trying to find out how far she can go, if I had to guess from her previous behavior towards David.  
  
I've never been the most popular kid, but I've always known how to fly under the radar when it came to trouble.  
  
I thanked Feng for pointing it out, and wiped away the fluids. Apparently the reaction wasn't satisfying to Feng, so she left me alone for the moment.  
  
I stood up and left the notebook next the log. I stretched my arms and looked around for a moment.  
  
What an odd bunch of people. I doubt they'd ever get together if not for this situation.  
  
"So there wasn't a lot of time last night, but how about I give you the grand tour?" Meg gave my shoulder a friendly pat.  
"It's better to get to know the terrain now that you're still early in it."  
  
Her words weighed more than she initially let on, but I knew. All these people, they looked dirty, tired.  
  
I smiled softly at her and stuck out an arm towards the trees, "Lead the way."  
  
She walked away from the campfire and I followed suit.  
"It was Maya right?" She trekked ahead while looking back at me.  
"Yeah. And you're Meg?"  
"Sure am! So you must have done your reading by now, so you know whe'll eventually circle back to the fire. Now..."  
she stopped at one of the bigger trees and waved her hands around. "You can do your business here whenever. Just give a shout if you're squatting down here and you see or hear someone moving your way." She jogged a little further away and pointed.  
"Over at the smaller trees there's bushes. There isn't always fruit there but we check regularly when we get back. Don't go too far out alone though. We've never actually seen it clearly, but someone... something seems to be on the outskirts."  
"So... the only safe place is the campfire, basically?"  
"Pretty much."  
"What about drinks? Water?"  
"Right. We get that in the trials. Have you read about the chests and the bloodweb?"  
"Yeah?"  
She took my arm and led me back to the path we came from, "There's water in medkits. We have to go without it some days, but Claudette's great with plants; she knows the ones which keep you hydrated enough if you chew them. Fair warning, it's gross but at least you get your fluids."  
"That reminds me... these trials, when do they happen?"  
Meg frowns and looks at the ground, "They just happen. One moment you're doing something, you blink, and suddenly you're in one of the games. You won't know who you're up against until you see or hear them. The places are never the same either, so always keep up your guard."  
I nod solemnly at her words. "For how long have you been doing this?"  
At this she stops and closes her eyes. "Who knows? Time flows different here. We don't even know if we're missing in the real world or not. It's depressing to even think about."  
  
I hummed in understanding. I didn't really want to know what going on back home without me or if time had even passed there. I didn't have the most exciting life, but I wanted my dog to be okay at the very least. We continued our path not saying anything to each other anymore. What can you even talk about in such a place that doesn't ultimately depress you thinking about it?  
We made it back to the campfire safely, though that was to be expected. We weren't with a full group anymore though.  
Four were missing, and since we didn't see anyone on our way back, it must've meant that they were selected for another hunt.  
From the looks of it, Feng, Dwight, Laurie and Claudette were the ones out, the others were scattered around the fire in silence.  
  
Somehow, even not knowing them for very long, I fear for them. I recall Claudette's scream from before, and a shiver runs down my spine. The journal taught me that she must have been put on one of those crude hooks that were scattered across the area.  
I gingerly rub my shoulder despite not knowing the feeling of being hung on them. I don't think I ever want to know. I'm scared I'll find out soon, though.  
  
My stomach churns and I close my eyes, taking a deep breath. No need to worry about what's to come. Don't panic.  
  
I exhale.  
  
I open my eyes and am no longer at the campfire.  
  
Don't panic.

 


	4. Fight or Flight Gone Wrong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maya surprises Ace when confronted with the next Killer.

Meg was right when she said none of these were the same. This time I didn’t start alone though.  
Ace saunters off to me with a confident grin on his face despite his somewhat hunched form.  
Seeing that cautious smugness raised my spirits a bit as he guided me through some trees towards a nearby generator. 

He didn't say a word as he got down and inspected the damage, so I didn't either. I knelt down on another side of the machine, though not opposite of him. I wasn't feeling nearly brave enough to be alone and let him out of my sight yet. 

On my side I had to remove some small bones before I could even get to the insides. I hoped they were from a rodent and not, say, finger bones or something. 

With that cleared out of the way, I could see Ace's calloused fingers working the gears already. He has a ring on one of his fingers, a detail I could ask him about later, maybe.  
I stuck one of my hands in the machine as well, keeping myself steady by resting my other hand against the generator.  
I felt clumsy compared to the older man's movements but somehow we got the job done together. It went a lot faster than the generator I had fixed before, or maybe it just felt that way because I wasn't alone this time. 

He raised his brows behind his sunglasses in a questioning way, tilting his head as well as if to ask "are you coming with?" 

I nodded for him to head on out and we set our trail for the next generator.  
We looked around us anxiously as we went, not having seen or heard the Killer anywhere yet, nor any screams of our fellow survivors. 

As our search trudges on, another light turns on in the distance, signaling that another generator has been completed. 

Ace and I found another generator around a walled off area and we started working on it quickly.  
We developed some sort of rhythm, our fingers dancing around each other as the parts started working like they should be, though not moving in harmony quite yet.  
I pulled back for a bit to get a clearer look and to exhale the breath I'd apparently been holding while I concentrated. 

That's when I saw it-- a masked man in a jumpsuit reaching for Ace as he was still working diligently.  
With fear for dear life, and not just my own, I screamed and clocked the man right in the face. 

He stumbled back and Ace jumped up, looking back at what just happened. 

Faster than I could process, Ace grabbed me by the hand and pulled me with him as we broke into a run. I looked back to see the man just following us with his eyes in a menacing pace, then suddenly I heard it -- a heartbeat not my own, but rather the Killer's. 

With the Huntress' humming I hadn't even paid attention to the beating, but right now it was more than clear that they were thrilled hunting us like animals. 

At some point we let go of each other to focus on running -- we came at a junction and we separated.  
Looking back, I could see the Killer decided to chase me. A renewed panic crept up on me, not just from being chased, but being separated. 

My throat burned from breathing so hard-- I occasionally took off on a few sprints with my dog, but they never lasted long. 

A sudden pain slashed at my back and I ran even harder, the pain in my chest temporarily forgotten. The dash was short-lived and I was caught up to again in no time. I looked around for an escape, but they were all out of my reach. A stab in the back was the last thing I felt before I fell to the ground. 

The pain was like nothing I'd felt before, then again, I'd never been hurt badly in my entire life, courtesy of my overprotective parents who never let me do anything remotely dangerous. 

My instincts told me to keep going despite the pain anyway, but my efforts to crawl away were rudely interrupted when the Killer picked me up and flung me over his shoulder. I struggled against his grip with all my might and it seemed to be working for a brief moment. Then he stopped in his tracks and slashed something in front of him. I heard a cry and knew someone was trying to help me from getting hooked. Was it Ace who had circled back to help me or was it someone else? With a few more efforts from my part I somehow managed to roll from his shoulder and land on my feet. 

I booked it as fast I could, and another light turned on a little further away from me. Next thing I know, the one who had been working on it is running towards me, leading me towards a place to heal me up. It wasn't much of a safe haven and Quentin wasn't equipped on helping me, but he tried his best to at least pull out the material of my clothes out of the wounds so it wouldn't dry up together. It'd do for now. We nodded at each other, but neither of us would move. 

I briefly notice another light going on when we hear a scream. Someone's been hooked. 

I felt a responsibility to save whoever was on that hook, mostly because they saved me from being on one myself.  
I took off in the direction of where I heard the scream and I came to a halt, making myself smaller as I crept closer to the sobbing and moaning.  
I suddenly heard a heartbeat and clung to the shadows of a big rock, hoping desperately the Killer hadn't seen me. A few agonizing moments later, the heartbeat faded into the distance and I ran for it. 

Up ahead I saw Ace on a hook, choking back tears. I did a quick take on my surroundings and dashed up to him. 

I was suddenly unsure how to get him down, but he already gave out advice to help me help him. "Just push me up!" He urged. I grabbed him by his sides and pushed up with all my might. A sickening sound came as Ace separated from the hook and he fell down on me. I somehow caught him and he started limping away and towards a wall. I followed and mimicked what Quintin had done to me moments before. Ace gave a sigh of relief before chuckling -- CHUCKLING -- at me. 

A siren suddenly blared across the map, signalling the final generator needed to power the exit gates had been done. 

With renewed vigor we set out for the nearest gates that were already being opened by our 4th party member, Nea. I was about to dash towards her but Ace pulled me back. I was about to protest when I saw the Killer heading straight towards her. Thankfully she pulled away from the switch just in time and got off into a mad sprint away from the doors. Ace took this chance to take over the switch and slowly but surely the door slid open. 

We waited at the edge for a while, but no one else came.  
Eventually we decided to believe that the others had escaped through the other gates, as we heard no screams. 

On the way back, Ace kept on giggling to himself. I would have asked him to share his apparent glee but was suddenly too spent to get a word out.  
Eventually we were back at the campfire where Nea and Quintin were already waiting.  
The two that were missing earlier were back as well, making our little group whole again. 

Upon seeing them, Ace just lost it. Took off his hat and sunglasses to emphasize the tear-inducing laughter he was experiencing. The others looked on in shocked confusion as I could only shrug at their looks.  
Visconti held himself up on a tree, gasping for air as he tried for words but stumbled over them. 

"This girl-" he hollered, pointing towards me, "punched Michael fucking Meyers in the face!"  
He doubled over, coughing and laughing his ass off. 

I recalled my fight-or-flight moment and started shaking myself, though not from laughter.  
I tried to play it off like I was, but instead let out a sob. Noticing all the eyes on me, I only started bawling louder like some idiot. I stupidly covered my face as if that would help anything beside blinding me from their judgement. 

At that moment I missed my dog tremendously. I'd always been bad by being put on the spot, and being so far away from home she was the only comfort I had. She was even registered as an emotional support dog and everything. I started shaking even more.

Ace's laughter died down and I felt a pair of arms embracing me tightly, one hand planted on the back of my head. 

I made an effort to stop crying and even out my breath, though with the added embarrassment it didn't come as fast as I'd hoped. The hug helped a little bit but I felt uncomfortable not being the one to have instigated it. 

"If it makes you feel better," the voice I identified as Dwight's said, "he really had it coming."  
At that I breathed out a laugh, as did a few others.  
I pulled away, having calmed down a bit, and wiped away the somewhat dried tears. 

"Thanks, Dwight." I smiled shakily at him. He didn't say anything, merely leading me to sit down at the fire.  
"This I gotta hear, why'd you clock old Michael like that?" someone asked, others muttering in agreement.  
I took a deep, shaky breath as I looked back at Ace, who looked back at me apologetically, though I knew he was still amused if I had to go on the snickering he'd done before. 

"Okay, so, me and Ace are working on this generator, right? Just finished one before that and we somehow got into this comfortable rhythm together so we're pretty focussed. I lean back to take a moment to take a more general look at it when I suddenly see a hand reaching for him in the corner of my eye-" 

Ace leans in at that moment, unable to keep to himself, "And then she suddenly screams! Her fist flies right past my face and hits him with this dull thud and a muffled 'ow!'" He chuckles again, "I thought for sure she'd lost it!"  
I give him a push and he stumbles backwards.  
"Man, even back home a man in a mask like that is scary as shit! My fight or flight sense might need some adjusting now, but at least we made it out." I crossed my arms, still kinda miffed at him for making me relive all that so soon, but I also felt a little relieved to have it out in the open.  
"I'm feeling lucky that you're in my corner, kid. Don't think it'd have gone so well without you."  
"You call that gone well?!"  
"You said it yourself, we made it out. Good job." I got a pat from Nea who grinned somewhat proudly at me, successfully concluding the story.  
I exhaled loudly and rubbed at my eyes, though no tears were coming out.  
We couldn't have been gone for more than an hour but I was already tired again.  
"Here, have this." I was offered a bottle of water, which I gladly opened and took a few big gulps from it.  
I hadn't even noticed how dry my mouth had gotten from all that and I was glad for the lubrication in my throat. Man, was I out of shape.  
"Anyway, how could he creep up on us like that without us noticing? I didn't hear the heartbeat until later."  
"That's his talent. He's slow at the start, but once he's stalked you for some time he becomes stronger and you start to hear him." Laurie frowns as she explains. "He was always creepy like that."  
I let her words sink in for a bit. So she knew the Killer before this? Were there more people connected to the Killers? On the one hand I wanted to ask, on the other I was afraid to know. I didn't even fully trust them yet now, and ignorance is bliss as they say. If they were to be my comrades here, I'd rather keep things as they were. 

I hummed and took another sip from my water. I was suddenly craving some sort of comfort food, like chocolate or something but I knew there was nothing of the sorts here. 

"I'm gonna search for some food." I stood up and evaded their eyes. I didn't want to feel like I was leaning on them too much, and besides, Meg had already given me directions.  
However, my plans were thwarted when Dwight said he'd join me. 

I begrudgingly waited for him to stand up too and we took off into the woods.  
It was silent for the first part, but it wasn't long before the nervous leader spoke up.  
"Are you doing okay?"  
He was probably thinking of my little outburst from before. I scratched my cheek and shrugged. "Yeah, I'm just really bad at being the center of attention."  
"You know, it's okay to be scared. You're not alone here."  
I considered his words and sighed. 

"Dwight, I want to ask you something."  
He stopped in his tracks and gave me his full attention. "You know, you've been looking out for me from the start, but is anyone watching after you?"  
He smiled, "It's not a problem. I need everyone at their best so I can survive, so WE can survive. Together."  
That made sense, but....  
"But isn't that a burden? It seems you're just taking on everything."  
He shrugged and then sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Comforting someone comforts me too, I guess." I didn't realize it right away, but he was referring to the hug we shared moments before.  
A blush crept up my face but I had to admit it did feel nice. I quickly walked further into the woods to hide my red color and frantically looked around for fruits. 

"I uhhh, have a question for you too." Dwight fidgeted in my shadow,  
"You said you had a dog right? Did it help you with your anxiety?"  
"I... yeah, good guess.” I paused and licked my lips for a moment, “I'm spending my last year of college in America and she's the only one from back home that grounds me, you know? I'm alright at being friendly with people, but she's my only friend close by... Well, not anymore I guess."  
My chest felt tight thinking about her and I could feel tears prickling at the corner of my eyes. I shook my head and blinked them away, but Dwight had already caught onto my distress.  
He put a clumsy hand on my shoulder, though didn't initiate another hug.  
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you, but I want you to know that should you need some company, you can always ask."

It was sweet of him to think of me like that, but there was a difference between hugging a dog on a regular basis and doing the same with another human being... Still, I appreciated his efforts, no matter if he did it for selfish reasons.  
"I know... it'll take some time though, but thanks." I squeezed his hand, then bounced on my feet excitedly when I saw the sight of berries in bushes. 

It was a welcome change of subject and I popped a few in my mouth before plucking some more to take with. I filled my pockets with the fruits and saw Dwight was plucking some as well. I thought he'd just tagged along to talk, but it seems he too wanted to eat something in the end.  
"You think anyone else wants to have some too?"  
He smiled at me, "Yeah, there's always someone who doesn't mind having some more."

They really don't have much here, do they? 

I redirected my hand from plucking fruit and I pulled softly at Dwight's sleeve.  
"Hey Dwight...". I didn't even know what to say, I just wanted to touch someone.  
This reality was too cruel, and I'd only been here for a bit.  
I scratched the fabric of his shirt and felt the dirt creeping under my fingernails, though it didn't bother me much. He sat next to me in silence, waiting for me to say more but I never did.  
Eventually I sighed and got up, plucking another handful of berries and looking back at the man.  
"You coming with?"  
He blinked in surprise for a bit but he recovered quickly and jumped up.  
The way he did that, I had to repress the urge to tousle his hair like he was a dog and led the way back to camp.

Once returned, I started to notice the cliques among the survivors that I hadn't take note off before. Jake and Nea seemed to be the loners of the group, each off into a different tree, just hanging about. The two older men were sitting by the fire. A group made of Claudette, Laurie and Quintin were sitting at the sleeping area, while Feng and David formed another group. All the while, Meg wasn't sitting still and was just moving from clique to clique to find something to do. 

At a guess, I'd have thought Dwight would join Claudette and co, but instead he made his way to the fire and handed the gentlemen some of the fruit we'd gathered. 

Not really fitting in anywhere, I decided to head over to David and maybe give him some berries as thanks for taking a hit for me.  
As luck would have it, he waved me over towards them already. 

"Hey guys," I greeted, offering them a handful of berries.  
"Oh you're my new favorite!" Feng announced before shoving all of them in her mouth.  
"That's not a compliment, by the way." David joked and winked at me.  
" Aww, you're just jealous someone else has taken your spot, tough boy."  
"Pssht, you wish."  
"Admit it! You might take a hit for us once in a while, but Maya's the top badass now."  
" She only did that because she's still a rookie, Feng. Ye saw her freakin' out 'bout it now, doubt she'd do it again."  
Despite his words he swung an arm around my shoulders and shook me a little bit. "Tho I'd love t'have been there meself jus' t'see the look on his face."  
I scrunched my face up and gestured with my arms, "He's got a mask, David, you wouldn't see anything."  
"Aaah, y'got me there." He shook me again, tho a little less friendly this time, it felt. 

"Shame you got that wake up call so early, I'd give anything to see the daylights punched out of the other Killers."  
"They've got weapons, Feng." David sighed and let go of me to lean on his knees.  
"I know! Still though..."  
I shook my head exasperated , but Feng didn't seem like she'd let go of her little fantasy. Oh well, if it made her happy....  
I thought back on the Huntress and wondered what'd have happened if I hadn't seen her axe beforehand, would I have punched her too?  
Not likely, because I heard her coming...

Besides, it's not like I go punching strangers on a daily basis, this was a one time thing.

"Let me take a look at your knuckles, yeah?" Without warning, David took hold of my hands and inspected them. They were dirty, but there was no damage on them whatsoever, unlike the little cuts and bruises I could see on his.  
"You'll be useless without your hands, so take care of them, right?"  
I could tell his backhanded insults meant he cared. I took his hands and patted them before pulling away from him. 

This was my legacy then, the girl that punched... Michael Meyers, they said? In the face. Perhaps that wasn't so bad here.

I did feel restless and fatigued, though, so I decided to move on to the next group. I followed Meg who plopped down with the all-male group by the fire.  
They were eating their berries one by one, opposed to how I'd seen Feng eat them.  
The vibe around them seemed a lot calmer too, despite Meg vibrating with too much energy. 

They acknowledged us with a nod but didn't say much otherwise.  
I had half a mind to just move on to the next group when Meg poked at me.  
"Wanna play Hangman or X's and O's or something?"  
The question sounded so surreal I had to do a double take, but it was a welcome surprise.  
"Yeah sure. Hangman's fun."  
She practically beamed and drew a few lines in the loose ground.  
We went back and forth a few times until we got bored with it. We counted up our points and Meg won by 1.  
"Well, good game." I accepted my defeat, to which I heard a resounding "GG!" From another side of the camp. Definitely Feng. 

The normalcy didn't last though, and in the blink of an eye, 4 people had returned to the hunting grounds.  
I looked around to see the others reactions, but they were just going on with their business. Meg was no longer sitting next to me, and Bill had also gone. Jake and Feng were also missing. 

I felt anxious again and I hugged myself for a bit, worrying about the ones in the trials.  
Before anyone could notice though, I got up.  
"I'm gonna take a walk."  
"Come back soon."  
I was glad no one followed me this time around, and I wandered into the forest.

With nothing else but trees around, I could almost imagine myself home. The ground around wasn't the same with barely any roots sticking out, and there was no shrubbery back home, but it was just a getaway dream anyway.  
I went further than Meg and Dwight had taken me before, wondering how long it would take to get to the outskirts. Every forest had an end at some point, right?  
However, the further I went, the darker it became.  
It was like a warning sign, but I foolishly ignored it.  
The trees became thicker and the paths more narrow, and then I saw it.  
Ahead, in the darkness, a pair of glowing eyes were looking curiously at me, and I felt my pulse fasten. I felt the faintest heartbeat pounding in my ears, but it didn't come closer. 

We were just staring at each other from this distance. I knew from the drumming beat this must be one of the Killers, but if so, why weren't they moving?  
For a flash I wondered what would happen if I got closer, then my instincts kicked in.

I turned tail and fled, making my way back to the light. Once I could recognize the berry bushes near the campfire again, I slowed down and regulated my breathing.

They'd warned me not to go too far, but I let my curiosity get the better of me. If they'd find out, they'd definitely get mad or something, and I wanted to avoid that for now.

With a nonchalant air about me, I returned to the campfire.


	5. Hugpiles and Hospitals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Small comforts and new challenges.

Coming back, they were none the wiser. They didn't even ask what took so long.

I counted it as a small blessing and joined Dwight at the fire. I didn't say anything to him and I'd hoped he'd do the same.   
He gave me a bit of a questioning look but I just awkwardly smiled his question away. He understood the hint and relaxed a little against the trunk. I did the same, shuffling ever so closer to him as I adjusted myself.

Sometimes, just being close to someone was nice. No talking, just sitting together in silence.The fire crackled almost pleasantly, as if this was just an outing between strangers. I recalled that Benedict Baker wrote something about not being burned by the fire, but there were offerings we could burn to help us out in the trials.  
With some hesitation, I reached out for the fire and paused right in front of it. So far everything I'd learned has been true, but being scared to burn still came naturally.  
I took in a breath and reached further, and once again the strange things happening were confirmed when the flames licked at my hand but didn't hurt one bit.   
It was comfortably warm actually. I would have kept it in a little longer, were it not for Dwight pulling my arm back softly by my sleeve.   
I glanced his way, but couldn't read his expression. I rested my other hand on his forearm and adjusted my seating once more, this time so I was resting against Dwight. He tensed up a bit, but relaxed after a while. Sitting shoulder to shoulder like this felt comforting.   
I was careful not to get too comfortable and lean into him, though. He tried his best to take care of the people here, I'd noticed that, but he always kept a respectable distance. I wouldn't break his values for my own selfish comfort, this was enough.

He exhaled through his nose loudly and slumped against me all of a sudden.   
Not expecting such kind of close contact with anyone here just yet, I sharply turned my head to look at him. His head leaned on my shoulder and he had his eyes closed, though not in an entirely relaxed way.

I'd somehow already sensed it since our first talk, but he needed this comfort. I gave his arm a squeeze and bumped ever so slightly into him to assure him I was there. I'd never been strong with words but I hoped this would reach him.   
He sighed and straightened himself again, though not leaving my side. I noticed my heart rate increased ever so slightly and I just hoped he hadn't caught that while he'd leaned on me.

I wanted to ask him his thoughts, but it would only ruin the moment.   
So we sat there. People shuffling around searching for things to do watched on curiously but eventually I just stared at the fire to avoid their gaze. I don't know for how long we sat there,but at some point Laurie had crawled up to my side, and Claudette on Dwight's. We leaned on each other, taking in our shared warmth for some comfort. Everyone joined the fire after that. Quintin, Ace, David and Nea were a bit more stoic and stayed on the other end, but it felt nice that they'd joined. It gave a real feeling of belonging.

Bill and Meg returned, a weary look on their faces. Jake and Feng did not, and would not be back for some time I'd learn later.  
Meg sat between me and Dwight, her back to us and breathing heavily. Bill sat across us with the others, also panting hard.   
There was no doubt the trial they just faced was a difficult one.   
I disturbed the serene hug-formation for a bit and reached into my pocket, turning around and letting some of the leftover berries fall into the redhead's lap. As I got back into position, Meg leaned her head back and nuzzled my shoulder blade.

For the first time since I got here, I felt a connection to these people, despite two of them missing. I'd make sure to give them a hug when they came back.   
I allowed myself to close my eyes and revel in this moment.  
When I opened them again, I was at a hospital.

\----

The waiting room seats in which I sat were dirty with dried blood, and a pallet of wood stood upright against the seats opposite of me. On my right the doors were open to reveal a small patch of dirt, fresh snow falling down on it. Beyond there were the exit gates.  
I got up from the seats and looked around, seeing a generator right behind the reception area. I looked out into the hallways, but I was alone for now.

I was about to touch the generator when I heard the faintest heartbeat coming closer. A quick as I could, I snuck back to the seating area and hid. The source of the heartbeat was here now and it looked hideous. The killers I had seen so far were still pretty human by the looks of them, but this creature, while humanoid, was all twisted and hunched. She did not carry a weapon, but her arm was mangled in such a way it could be used as one.

I held my breath, hoping desperately that she hadn't seen me.   
The Killer knelt down and drew something on the floor of a nearby window, then took off in another direction.

While curious, I decided against inspecting her drawing and crept back to the generator.   
The first scream of the match sounded in the distance; a woman's voice. It sounded suspiciously like the scream I'd heard in my first match, which would mean Claudette was in here with me. Though it was a twisted way to identify someone, I was glad to know one of my teammates out there.

If I'd go and find her now, that would mean there'd be two people not making progress on the generators though.

I vowed that after this generator, I'd go towards where I heard the sound and find her.  
But somehow it was harder to fix things than before, knowing someone was out there hurt while I was tinkering instead of saving.   
When the pumps on top of the generator signalled that I was about 3/4 done, it suddenly became more easy to work on again. I felt a little less guilty knowing the generator was almost done and I could go look for my teammates.   
A little while later the machine sprung to life.  
I stayed behind the reception desk for a little bit longer, waiting to hear a heartbeat, but it didn't come.   
Taking my chances, I ran, though not very far. I triggered what I now know was a trap,and the deformed lady from before sprung out of the ground. I turned and ran the other way, my heart beating in my throat. Again, I didn't run far, for the Hag was suddenly in front of me, her deformed claw of a hand striking me in the face. I yelped and blindly ran into an open room, though I was stopped in my tracks by a hospital bed in my way.  
I was struck again, in my back this time and I fell forward. My already injured head hit the railing of the bed and then the world went black.

An insane pain in my shoulder brought me back to consciousness, and I screamed.   
This pain was nothing I'd ever felt before; the stabs and slaps so far were pinpricks compared to this.   
Hanging from this hook was worse than I'd imagined and every move I made hurt like hell. That's what this was, hell.   
I barely caught the last glimpse of the killer rounding a corner after she'd hung me up.  
I looked to the floor and sobbed, trying to hang as still as possible. My head was throbbing by the smacks it received as well.   
My self-pity had never been this high, that's for sure.   
I hung there for what felt like centuries, and I saw strange tendrils slowly appearing from the base of the hook and making their way to me. What were they?   
Panic made its way into my heart again, and the urge to struggle became stronger.

There was no need to do so anymore though, because suddenly there was a pair of hands on my waist, pulling me up and away from the hook.   
I fell into my savior's arms, sobbing louder, but with relief this time. "You're gonna be okay, shhh." Dwight led me into a room where the lights had stopped working and he knelt me down between a pair of bunk beds and started fixing me up. I took a finger sideways in my mouth to stifle my sobs. After he fixed up my shoulder he gently took my face in his hands and I let go of my digit between my teeth to look at him. He smeared off some of the blood that had dripped a trail down my face. His face was twinged with worry; not just for me, but also the fear of getting caught. Back at the camp I'd seen him nervous, but never like this. It made me worry too.  
So far, I always thought that together with the others I'd be alright. But the look on his face made me realize that rescuing others took more courage than could be mustered at some points.  
No matter how altruistic we might be, fear was our first common denominator. I stashed away my fear for now, feeling there was no time for it.

I clasped the hand lingering on my cheek and leaned into it for a second, then I lowered his hands to make clear that I was ready to move again. His mouth opened like he was about to say something, but he chose against it.   
We started searching for the next generator and I was only too aware how frustrating it was to be in a closed space now. The walls obstructed all of the areas, and I had no idea how many generators still needed to be done.   
At this point I hoped that there was at least 1 other one done besides the one I had fixed.

As 'luck' would have it, there was a generator in the next hallway and we started doing the thing we needed to do. With Dwight by my side, I felt I worked more efficiently than I had done with anyone else. As soon as I was done with one part, he picked up the slack and connected it with the part he was working on.   
In record time, the machine roared to life, its lights illuminating the hallway.   
We ran to what hopefully would be the next generator, but as we went, we triggered another one of the Hag's traps. Thinking it was just an illusion, I was about to run past it, but Dwight pulled me back and into a room. The heartbeat intensified and all my common sense told me to run, but Dwight kept me put against the wall. Then suddenly it was gone. The nervous leader breathed a sigh of relief and I could feel myself relax a little as well, knowing the Killer was not around. Only then did I notice how stuck between the wall and the man I was. Despite knowing how ridiculous it was in this situation, I couldn't help the blush from creeping up my face.   
I was too afraid to speak up in fear that the Killer might hear us, so I didn't make a sound. His breath was warm on my temple and for a small second I wanted to look up and maybe kiss him. Like none of this was real or mattered.   
But I couldn't. As soon as that split-second of realization hit, I couldn't believe myself for even thinking such a thing.

While I concluded my internal struggle, Dwight moved away. I remained for a little longer, only following him after he was a few feet ahead.  
He knelt down at another objective and I knew I had to cool my head to help. As soon as I joined him though, the now familiar siren sounded and the generator burst to life on its own. I jumped a bit from the sudden development but knew now was the time to move.   
Looking further down the hallways, I recognized the waiting area where I'd started. I tapped the man and pointed at the exit, when another scream sounded. Again, I could recognize it as Claudette's.

"Let's make sure there's a way out before we get her." My companion whispered and set foot in the snow. He gestured me to flip the switch, so I did.   
The mechanism resisted as I pulled it and it took some strength to keep it down. A few agonizing seconds the familiar creaking of the doors sliding open ran in my ears and I looked back to Dwight.   
On his nod, we took off to save our friend.

Navigating the hallways was tougher than I innitially thought and when we reached Claudette it was too late. We were just in time to see the tendrils stab her, making a nasty sound and pulling her up into the ceiling.   
"No!" I screamed, but Dwight was already pulling me back. There was nothing we could do for her now.   
We ran back to the exit, but my outburst had lured the Hag towards us. She chased us all the way back towards the exit, where she managed to land one hit on me in the back before we got to safety.

We were so close to the camp, but my feet refused to set another step. All the pent-up feelings came spilling out as tears and my legs gave out. Dwight turned back as he heard the thud and squatted next to me, putting his arm around my shoulders. "We're almost there." He cooed, helping me back on my feet. In that moment I snaked my arms around him and sobbed softly in the crook of his neck. He rubbed my back and held my head as he'd done before.   
I was so scared.   
What happened to Claudette? Would those tendrils have captured me too if Dwight was too late? Could we have saved her if we had gone for her first instead of prioritizing the gates?  
The word 'sacrifice' hadn't instilled much fear in me when I saw it on paper, but the reality was so much scarier than I ever imagined.

"We need to keep going." Fairfield insisted and pulled back. I knew he was right but I still felt robbed of his warmth. I reached and grabbed his hand for comfort instead and let him pull me back to camp.

As it turned out, we had only been with the 3 of us in the trial. It made for a tougher challenge against the Entity, which was apparently a thing that happened.   
We were down 3 people now at the fire and I felt my heart sink. I learned that everyone would return eventually, after the Entity would have tortured them, but it wasn't much of a comfort to know that.

I crashed down and curled into a ball in the resting area.

_Being here really sucked._


	6. Honk me Hard, Baby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No, that is not a Pennywise reference.

I'd been staring at the same patch of dirt for a while when I heard footsteps coming towards me.   
"Care to accompany me on a walk?"   
The worn leather shoes of Ace Visconti stepped right in front of my sight.  
I looked up and frowned at the older man. At some point he took off his glasses and hat and I was kind of impressed by how full his head of hair was.   
"Do I look like I'm in the mood?" I retorted, curling up tighter and averting my gaze.  
To my surprise, Ace's reaction was more aggressive than I'd anticipated. He pulled me up by my waist and put me on my feet.   
Geez, he was strong. Must pack some muscles underneath that outfit.   
"I insist." He said smoothly and I couldn't help but glare at him. I begrudgingly hooked my arm in his outstretched one and he led me towards the woods.  
This felt strangely reminisce of when I was still a kid and my mom dragged me with to go shopping.

"What are we doing here, Ace?"   
After a while of walking in circles I just had to ask him. He turned and took me by the shoulders leaning down a bit to be at eye level with me.  
"Dwight told me what happened. I know it's hard to see someone die, especially in the way we do here, but I want you to remember that she'll be back."   
He pointed towards the darker part of the woods. "She and Jake and Feng will appear from that part of the woods and be back with us in no time. A little worse for wear, but alive."

My head started pounding at his explanation, "I know, okay? Despite being here for so short, I understand!" I shrugged him off and tears started streaming down my face.   
I'd always hated how I'd cry so easily, but right now Ace seemed taken aback by it so it actually helped to make my point.   
"The pain I felt is hardly fake, and whatever it is that took Claudette, I hate for her to be hurt by it!" I rubbed my temple, feeling a headache coming on.   
'Look, Ace, whatever it is you're trying to do here, it's not helping."   
For the first time, his smile genuinely faltered.

"Maya, I..." he reached back for me, touching my shoulder. "I'm sorry."   
I sighed and leaned against him, too tired to fight him and the headache this was giving me. "I know you're trying to comfort me but it's my decision to deal with it this way." I rested my head on his shoulder and laughed softly, "I'd shout in the woods but that might give the wrong impression."   
A bit of dark humor, sure, but Ace laughed too so it was fine. He didn't try to go in for a hug, but didn't resist me leaning on him either. I lingered a little while longer then jerked away and looked at the dark side of the forest.  
"So... is that why you won't go further into the woods? Afraid to see fallen allies being tortured?"   
Ace cocked his head, "Why go into possible danger when safety is here?"   
I put my hands on my hips and squinted at the trees, "What if that is the way out?"   
"It's not like we haven't tried going further..." he started. I recalled the glowing eyes I'd seen and the heartbeat I'd heard, wondering if they knew. They probably did, but was he going to tell me?  
For a moment Ace was silent, then he continued, "They're out there. All of them, circling us like vultures."   
I was glad he was being straight with me, and the information he's given me was more than enlightening.  
"I...see."  
The one with the glowing eyes hadn't moved. Would it have if I had come closer?   
Were there more waiting in the dark?  
I was shaken out of my thoughts by a hand on my shoulder, pulling me back.   
"Let's get you cleaned up, shall we?" He pulled a bloody strand of hair from my face and tucked it behind my ear.  
The gesture made me break into a nervous smile and I looked down shyly.   
It was stupid, but I couldn't help but find it somewhat charming.  
He noticed and leaned in teasingly, "Oh, you like that?" He smirked, and I pushed him away.   
"My ears are sensitive, don't get any ideas." We laughed and went back to the base.

With my spirits lifted despite feeling that some people were missing, we joined the others. They seemed to be relieved to see us return, and I had to admit I was glad to see them too.  
Whatever else I had gained from the little walk with Ace, I did not know, but I felt a little better about it all.   
I joined the others at the fire and I was given a damp cloth to clean up the worst bits of blood on my face.  
It felt refreshing, but at this point I really missed a shower.   
If I'd seen it right, there were some showers in that hospital we were earlier, I wondered if they were in working order?   
I patted my head a little more and turned to Nea with a flourish, "How do I look, dear?" I figured a little bit of humor might be a nice way to keep up everyone's spirits.   
The Artist took the cloth from me and dapped one more spot on my temple. "As ravishing as the day I met you."   
Which in truth wasn't that long ago.

"Oh you're too kind." I joked back in a posh accent, flipping my hair. Come to think of it, I could really do with a hair tie or something.  
I looked over at Meg with her 3 braids. "Say, Meg, you wouldn't happen to have another hair-tie, would you?"  
Immediately the athlete searched her pockets, but came out empty-handed.   
"Sorry, no-go."   
"Hmm... do we have something that could act like one?" I looked around the group but they all just vaguely shrugged.   
My eyes landed on Dwight's tie and I wondered if the material could keep my hair together.   
"You got another one of those ties lying around, Dwight?" The man looked down at his chest and lifted the fabric.  
"Yeah sure. Hold on." He went and searched in his pile of clothes and came out with a mustard yellow and pink tie.   
"Will it work?"   
I fumbled a bit to get it to stay in my hair but eventually I managed to do it by making a nice bow out of it. Well, nice was an overstatement, but at least my hair was out of my face.  
"Thanks Dwight. This'll help me out a lot."   
He waved it away and sat down by the fire again.   
Then it was quiet again.   
The waiting made me come back down from the happy high I'd briefly felt.  
I decided to go back to the resting area and lie back down again.   
Dwight and Bill joined as well.   
Feeling a warm body next to me was nice, but I had to be careful not to snuggle closer to it like I did my dog.   
I didn't have to worry about that though, because as soon as i closed my eyes, I fell asleep.  
\---  
There was nothing but black in my dreams. I peered into the darkness, and then I saw it. A non-existent light reflecting several puddles, things glimmering beneath the surface.   
With nothing else there, I inspected them, giving them a light tap with my foot. For a moment I thought I saw the color change, but it was gone too fast to be sure. Taking in a breath, I stepped inside it, and the change was apparent now. From where I stood, the ripples coming from my foot turned the puddle blood-red. Emerging from it came a medkit. As I pulled it up, the liquid glided off like silk, and it was dry.   
Confused, I went to another puddle, where the same thing occurred, only now instead of a medkit, some loose gears and springs came up. I continued on like that for a while, until I could get nothing out of it anymore.   
In this fashion I'd collected a small pile of this and that's that I realized could help me out in the trials. This must be the Bloodweb that Benedict Baker was talking about.   
So it was true, even in dreams, there's no escape from the Entity's realm.  
\---  
Waking up felt surreal. In the dream I was grasping items, and now awake they were neatly lying on a pile next to me.   
"Huh... alright." Surprised, but pleasantly so, I leaned on one arm and inspected the loot. It's like I pulled everything out of my dream, that's some trippy shit.  
As quietly as I could so as to not wake the others, I collected the items and carried them over to the campfire.   
David looked over as I dropped the pile next to one of the trunks and nodded approvingly. "Nice haul. That'll come in handy."   
I nodded in agreement. The bloodweb was a handy place indeed; I felt like I had learned more while I was there as well, like I've learned a new skill somehow. I'd have to test it out in a trial to make sure if it was just a hunch I could do it or if it was just a ruse of the Entity.   
Visconti picked up some of the items to inspect them closer and put them down when he was done. The ring on his finger glistened in the light of the fire, and I was reminded of my curiosity.   
"Hey Ace. That ring... you married back home?"   
It wasn't a traditional wedding band, but he did wear it on that finger.  
The gambler raised his hand and wiggled his fingers. "Would it break your heart if it was?"   
I groaned and rolled my eyes at him. "Can you just answer the question, Visconti?"   
"Ouch, so impersonal, I'm hurt." He pulled off the ring and took my hand.  
"I won in it a bet," he shoved it on one of my fingers but it was too big, "Though that's a story for another time."   
He pulled the ring back, and I plucked it from his fingers to inspect it closer. It was pretty cool.   
I reflected the gesture he'd done earlier and pushed the ring on his finger.  
"Ah c'mon mates, you’re proposing to each other already?"   
David, tired of being left out of the conversation came in with a jab I hadn't expected.  
"I fell for her the moment her fist flew past my face." Ace immediately retorted, adjusting the ring on his finger with a grin.

"Apparently 'hitting on someone' is meant to be taken literally these days." I remarked dryly.

At that, the two of them laughed.

Honestly, I had no problem being affectionate with anyone here, though it felt like a bad idea to become too attached for obvious reasons.   
In this short time though, I felt like I'd already had some kind of bond with the silver fox. Him and Dwight were very hands on to see if someone was okay, and I could appreciate that. Claudette and David came in close after them for the people I felt comfortable with. Though David did talk a lot more, there was just some relaxed air about him that made him fun to hang with. That, and he did take a hit for me.   
The botanist reminded me of myself back when I was still at my parents' place.

I unzipped my hoodie for the first time since I got here and plopped down next to the Scrapper.   
He adjusted where he sat and looked at my shirt.   
For a moment I'd forgotten all about my bad taste in sleep shirts and it was about to stab me in the back.   
"Does that sodding say 'Honk me Hard, Baby'?"   
....It did.   
Below the text was an old-fashioned horn drawn to make it worse.

I laughed at myself and put my head in my hands, "it's my pajama shirt alright, my type of humor is so bad I gotta hide it."   
He got a rise out of it though. "That's brilliant, mate."  
I pulled the fabric around so it would no longer stick to my body - sweat and blood alike had made it cling to my skin uncomfortably so.   
Judging from the others’ backs, I could easily guess that the back of my clothes was most-likely torn as well; I was just hoping no pieces would be left in the wounds.   
The pain was enough already, it’d be worse if they’d get infected.

Then David and Ace were gone, taken by the Entity to another game.   
With no one else at the fire anymore, I decided to go back into the woods -- maybe my foolish good mood was what made me braver.

Soon I was back where I last took off; I searched for any sign of a Killer, but I couldn’t even hear a heartbeat.   
I dared step even further into the darkness and that’s when I heard it - the sound of a garbled noise in the darkness.


	7. Foolish Bravery Rewarded?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With every good thing comes something bad. In the Entity's realm, the balance varies.

My steps halted to listen more closely to the sound. It almost sounded like an angry dog. Then it stopped in front of me. Whatever made the noise, it was invisible and presumably staring right at me.

With a trembling hand, I reached out and jumped when my hand brushed against something. Upon contact, it snarled at me but I could sense no movement otherwise.

Could they hurt us outside the trials? It was a question I’d forgotten to ask and couldn’t remember reading the answer to, but wanted to find out.  
There was no resistance when I reached out again and felt tattered cloth brush my fingers. It fluttered a little away from the body it hung from. I rolled the fabric between my digits and wondered what would happen if I reached further than its clothing.  
For a moment, nothing happened. We just stood there like it was a standoff of who would move first. Then I felt it close the distance, my hand getting stuck in-between our bodies. I held my breath, waiting for what was to come next, but nothing did. It just stood there against me.  
I turned my hand and rested it what I thought could be its chest and kept it there.  
Every part of my body felt stiff with nerves, this was a dangerous game I was playing.  
It kept on gurgling in the same tone, not appearing pleased or unpleased by this situation. I was scared and excited at the same time. With no idea if I was going to make it out alive now that we were here, I had only two options. See how far this could go or run and probably never find out.  
I wasn't confident in my decision at all, but I leaned into the Killer. It snorted loudly at my touch and for a moment I was certain that was the end. Holding my breath, I felt the creature move to lift his arms, but then he dropped them again. With as much courage that I could muster, I slowly, slowly pushed myself off him and looked up, resting my hands on his torso.  
The garbled noises came with warm, smelly breath I could feel now, and the puffs were shortly coming on the top of my head, like he towered a good bit above me. I searched for a face but I just didn't know where to look.  
"I... have to go. Is that okay?"  
I didn't even know if he could speak English, but next thing I know, he takes a step back, my hands dropping in the air where he was.  
Taking a step back as well, I nodded towards the darkness, and turned slowly. I heard a quick snarl, like he turned suddenly, then the gurgling faded into the distance.

My heart pounded so hard I thought it would beat out of my chest. Regulating my breathing, I willed myself to go back to the campfire.

The path felt familiar by now, but I stopped dead in my tracks when someone yelled at me.

"Stop! Hey, wait!"

Looking back, Feng and Jake were stumbling towards me, all nasty and bloody. Jake dropped to his knees, as did Feng after taking a few more steps towards me.  
I ran, sliding down into the grass and leaves next to them. I could barely believe they were back.  
"What are you doing out here?" Jake asked as I pulled him up and let him lean on me. Had they seen me? Even so, did they actually SEE anything incriminating?  
I shook my head, "Just taking a walk." I hauled Feng on my other shoulder and just like that we stumbled back towards the fire. "Nice shirt." Feng commented and gave me a half-smile, but I could see she was worn out. She looked like she could use a little bit of humor though. "Don't honk me, please." I chuckled, "I'm defenseless with two of you leaning on me right now."  
Feng just leaned her head on my shoulder, but Jake wasn't responsive at all, in fact, he started getting heavier.  
"Stay with me, man. We're almost there." The saboteur groaned, showing a weakness I had not expected from him. We were almost there, but the both of them were slipping off me, which was a talent of itself because I was almost a good head shorter than Jake.  
He had his eyes closed and was pretty much leaning into my armpit now. I gave Feng a shake, "Can you get someone here? I don't think Jake's..."  
"I'm okay." He murmured into my armpit, hoisting himself up, or at least attempting to. Feng, despite her own pain, detached herself from me and held Jake on his other side.  
We dragged ourselves back to camp, but there was just one person left there. Upon seeing us, Laurie pulled out a medkit from my pile and ran to us.  
We put Jake on the floor, and I rolled up my sweater to act like a headrest.  
With practiced precision, she started cleaning up Jake first.  
There was some trouble finding where he was bleeding from, but as soon as she found the wounds it all went better.  
The man groaned upon touch, but his face relaxed a bit once Laurie finished up.  
I removed his scarf and cleaned up some odds and ends on his neck and face. I wasn't that great at treating wounds but I felt like it wouldn't be long until I'd be as practiced as Laurie at it.  
She took the smaller female towards the fire to take a closer look at her, while I stayed behind to watch Jake.  
He was extraordinarily silent, but the slight twinges on his face showed he was in pain. He'd come off as a loner to me, but even so it didn't feel right to leave him in this state.  
With one hand I ran my fingers through his hair, with the other I held his hand. He stirred, his eyes fluttering open and closed for a bit until he found enough willpower to weakly stare at me.  
I removed my hand from his head, unsure if what I found soothing would be the same for him. I couldn't meet his gaze so I pointed it at our joint hands. He squeezed and tugged it slightly, wanting me to look him in the eye. I could feel tears well up in mine, I didn't want to look at him in this state. It looked like he was dying, but from how everyone was acting, he probably wasn't even allowed to in this place. Instead, we had to suffer. He gave me another tug and I finally looked at him.I couldn't read him at all. I blinked away my tears and licked the dryness from my lips, searching his eyes for anything he wanted to tell me, if anything.

Nothing.

He sat up, slowly, holding my arm to pull himself up. I held him steady by his shoulders. "Don't strain yourself." The words came out like a croak. Jake just shook his head once and let out the breath he was holding. "My back..." he groaned, pulling at his zipper. I helped him take off his jacket and the shirt that was underneath.  
What was revealed was worse than I imagined; his back was full of scar tissue and wounds, both new and older, re-opened ones. I winced at the sight. At that first glance I could immediately see which was the wound that was bothering him though. A piece of shrapnel, like an old saw had hacked into his back was sticking out like a sore thumb.  
I gingerly touched the area around it, gauging his reaction, "is this it?"  
He hissed and replied, "Yes."  
From touching the surroundings I could figure out how it was lodged in there. I nodded though he couldn't see my face. "This is gonna hurt."  
Like a band-aid on a hairy arm, I snatched out the junk metal, emitting a cry from the man it came from.  
It was roughly the size of my thumb, and once it was out, Jake slumped forward.  
I was sure he passed out, but when I leaned him back, he mouthed a thank you though no words came out of his mouth.

Silently, I cleaned and patched him up, then dressed him. The saboteur, while usually so collected, leaned on my shoulder and softly weeped afterwards. I massaged the back of his head and held his hand until the sobbing died down.  
After seeing his back, I wanted to know more than anything what happened after being taken by the Entity, but decided to hold that question in the back of my mind for later. Now was not the time.  
Laurie came back and together we helped Jake towards the fire. I quickly checked on Feng, but she looked a lot better than Jake after being bandaged.  
They both got captured in the same game though, so why was she better off than Jake? Was there a difference in torture when it came to different sexes? It might not be true, and I felt bad for feeling a little hopeful at the thought of being hurt less.  
I went back to Jake and ran another hand through his hair, then left to sit down and lean against a nearby tree, grabbing my sweater on the way.  
Everything that had happened since my last trial was a lot to take in; a Killer not directly out to get me for now, fellow survivors returning after being sacrificed and fixing them up to the best of our abilities. It was crazy.  
I turned to lean on my side and rest my head against the bark, closing my eyes and putting my sweater over my shoulders like a blanket. Being in this everlasting darkness fucked with my senses too.

No one returned from their trials that night.


	8. Shocking Reunions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Small mistakes and poor fashion decisions. Who cares about looks here anyway?

For the time being, there were no trials anymore.  
Jake and Feng had a hard time recovering, and apparently just throwing Laurie and I wasn’t good enough to sate the Entity’s desire.  
I took it upon me to gather food for us, and with a few pointers from Jake I somehow managed to get us meals for some time. They weren’t big portions, but it was just enough to keep our strength up.

On the edge tethering safe and unsafe, the Killers were guarding the dark part of the forest. More than once, I’d heard lullabies and heartbeats closer than I’d liked.   
We were all getting restless waiting for what’s to come, and eventually, Jake came along with me though not fully recovered because he couldn't sit still.

  
An apple taunted me by just being out of my reach, even jumping barely made me brush the fruit.   
Jake looked up and reached for it as well, his eyes calculating whether or not he could grab it by hopping. The jump could crack open old wounds once he’d hit the ground, pushing back his full recovery.   
While I was glad for the pause in games, I didn’t want anyone to hurt more than was necessary. Especially in this supposed ‘safe’ place.   
Jake danced a little on his feet, ready to jump when I stopped him.

“I’ll lift you.”  
He gave me a look like I’d gone mad, but I was determined. My strength would be enough to carry him for a few seconds so he could take that apple. Leaning forward, I embraced his upper legs and lifted him off the ground.   
“Woah!”  
He steadied himself on my shoulders and looked down towards me, then up at the apple. With a pissed off look he plucked it and I let him down.   
He didn’t say anything but I figured he thought he could’ve done this on his own. Maybe he could have, but I didn’t want to risk it.   
Jake wasn’t that much heavier than a golden retriever, in all honesty. His weight was mostly bone and muscle if I’d take a gander, courtesy of this place’s dreaded trials most-likely.

I smiled softly at his stubbornness, but my amusement was short-lived. In the darkness there were eyes glowing at us. Multiple pairs, even. The saboteur noticed my unease and looked in the same direction.   
He grabbed me by the arm and nodded his head towards the camp, but I didn’t move.

I peered deeper into the darkness, taking a step towards it. The sound of their terror radius now whispering in my ears, I narrowed my eyes to look closer at them. It’s been forever since any of our comrades had returned, and with the Killers stalking us now, I had a strange feeling something was about to happen.

One was garbed in doctor robes, his eyes and mouth pried wide open. The other was deformed, his arm pestered with oozing boils. I hadn’t gone up against them yet, but the sight of them made my stomach churn.  
Then I saw something stir behind them, and my heart leaped.   
A body floated closer, and a lullaby sounded in the air. They tossed Claudette on the border of darkness, and further ahead there were more of us running. With little care for my own safety, I charged towards them, sliding to a halt on the grass but not nearly fast enough.   
I bumped into the Doctor, who laughed eerily and held me by the collar of my shirt.

“Maya!”

Jake had come closer but still stood a safe distance away from it all, watching with wide eyes. Electricity crackled from the Killer’s arm and for a moment I felt nothing but pain. He released me from his grasp and I fell down in a heap next to Claudette. The pain was gone as soon as it came and I looked back at the Killer. He just let out another one of his laughs.   
My muscles felt cramped, but I could move. Gasping for air, I grabbed Claudette and dragged her closer to safety. At that point the others ran past the Killers, past me, and stopped at Jake’s side.   
That still wasn’t all of us though, but it would be soon.   
The last of us were carried much like Claudette, only they were awake, struggling in the grasps of the Huntress and Michael Meyers.   
The ones in the Shape’s arms managed to wriggle out and enter the safe area themselves, the others were unceremoniously thrown to the ground before they were able to crawl away.

Then the Killers all returned to the darkness.

I fell back to the floor, clasping Claudette tightly and allowing myself to laugh and cry in relief. She was still unconscious, her soft breathing the only sign she was alive.

We were all together again.

To see everyone back, be it worse for wear, it felt good. With a sigh I got up and managed to lift Claudette up bridal style.   
Everybody helped each other to get back to camp, where Laurie and Feng had a bit of a fright when they saw all of us return, but quickly came at us with medical equipment.

Much as I’d done with Jake back when, I created a pillow for Claudette with my sweater and put her gently to the floor.   
She had been gone the longest, and her state was the most worrying. Removing layers from her clothes to get to her wounds more closely was easy, the hard part was to clean her up. To the best of my abilities, I did so. It seemed her being passed out was just chance, because as I was putting a cloth to her forehead, she awakened.   
It took her a moment to recognize me, but when she did she leaned into my touch, a tear streaming down her face. I smiled sadly at her, feeling my own tears well up again, and dabbed the cloth a bit more before lowering it and leaning down to carefully hug her.   
"I'm glad you're back."  
She returned my embrace in a heartfelt way, burying her face in my neck. We couldn't stay like that long though, there were more people to look after and I'd already fixed her up to the best of my abilities.

I went to the next person, which happened to be Dwight. The nervous leader was sitting at the fire with a bowed posture, his shirt soaked with blood.  
I caught his attention by waving my hand in front of his face since I had no idea how many cuts were hidden beneath his garments.   
"Hey, can I take a look?" I pointed at him to take off his shirt, which he did.   
"Oof." I couldn't help calling out when I saw the state he was in. Wounds and inflamed skin as far as the eye could see. I didn't have much choice but to grab a water bottle and let the water spill on his back. Dwight cringed and hissed through his teeth as the cool water washed away the fresher dirt and blood. I dabbed away the caked on parts and repeated the process until he was clean.

"That should do it... keep yourself warm here, alright? I'll give you a clean shirt in a bit."   
He held himself tightly and he looked self-conscious about being shirtless, but didn't move to put on his old shirt. Poor thing.

The thing was though, none of the shirts around here were clean; mine might even be the most clean one.   
I took the garment that was on the ground and inspected it as I went to his clothes pile; I could probably fit his clothes.   
I took one of the shirts he'd graciously given me that first day and switched it for the shirt I was wearing. It was a little tight around the chest but otherwise fine.

Coming back, He hadn't noticed the switch and looked hard at the shirt before looking back at me.  
"That's your shirt." He caught a glimpse at the shirt I was wearing instead and his confusion grew, "that's mine."  
I pushed the 'Honk' shirt in his hands, "my shirt's the cleanest. Take it."   
Before he could argue I left for the next patient.

In this rotary fashion, everyone was cleaned up in no time.   
By the end of it, I felt pretty tired but satisfied that people were treated.

It had already been noted that Dwight was wearing my shirt (I was glad he wasn’t as stubborn to grab one of his own) and a few teasing remarks spread across the party. I tried explaining it was the cleanest, but Feng argued that I had not given her or Jake my shirt before.   
It was true, but Feng didn't seem to need it and I simply hadn't thought of it with Jake.   
In a rare attempt at humor, the survivalist agreed with the competitor, "She'd rather honk Dwight than us, we see how it is."   
A laugh escaped me at that. All the while Dwight just buried his face in his hands, embarrassed.

It was good to try and keep things light-hearted for now; who knew when the next trial awaited now everybody was back. It was almost certain that me and Laurie would be thrown out there soon, but who would come with us? We’d have to see.

Making sure everyone was looked after, I decided to turn in for ‘the night’. 


	9. Treatment for the Fighting Spirit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A long overdue punishment for Maya in this one. Some good comes with the bad too in the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> was this burn slow enough? we finally get to kiss Dwight!

The games had started again.

Somehow I’d come out of another few alive, and right now everything seemed to be going alright - I really started to get the hang of this.

I’d almost finished my generator when I started hearing screams in the distance, though it didn’t sound like the usual pained ones. It sucked, but listening out for this stuff had given me extra knowledge of who or what was out there. Judging from the screams, at least I knew it was David who was out there. His voice was lower than any of ours, it was easy to tell.  
Still, these screams were short, shocked ones; what could it mean?

The generator I was working on burst to life and I was ready to carry on, but the screaming started getting closer and I could hear the Killer’s heartbeat starting to beat in my ears.  
I hid behind the shack’s walls, hoping that whoever was being chased would lead the Killer away. The drumming came closer and I held my breath, hugging myself close to the wall.  
Suddenly I felt a jolt run through my body and a scream escaped me naturally.

I knew this sensation.

Before I could recover the Doctor rounded the corner and started his chase on me.  
The literal shock left me vulnerable and he was fast to make use of that.  
He took out his weapon, a spiked stick, and hit me hard on my upper arm.  
The painful intrusion made me run a little faster in the hopes I could outrun him.

I turned and tried to shake him in the cornfield. Staying as quiet as I could, with a little trick Jake thought me to keep my grunts to a minimum, I hid between the cornstalks.  
There was no use though, because he just used another one of his shockwaves to find me out.  
Betrayed by my own voice, I ran — straight into the Doctor.  
He laughed a maniacal laugh and hit me with his stick. I was downed in an instant.  
Swinging me across his shoulder, he found the nearest hook and threw me on it.

I yelled - the feeling of being hooked was one I’d never get used to, the pain was just too much. Sadistically, he smacked me one more time before going off to hunt my teammates. Feeling that no one would stick around close enough while I was being chased, I reached back and up for the base of the hook, trying to lift myself off of it, but to no avail. I tried one more time, but suddenly I caught sight of the tendrils appearing and stopped, letting my arms fall to my sides again.  
I did so a bit too fast though, and my shoulder protested in pain. I didn’t mind it too much, instead I looked at the Entity’s arms fearfully. Not soon after they’d formed fully around me, one of them dived towards my chest — I could catch it just before it reached, though it fought hard to try and pierce me.  
Fighting the Entity while hooked was a lot to handle, and I wasn’t sure whether or not I could continue much longer. In the not so far distance I could hear screaming — someone was coming for me but the Doctor was right on their heels. While holding off the Entity, I vaguely saw two of my teammates running towards me, the Killer right behind.  
Claudette pulled me off the hook while David acted like a buffer to protect us. The Doctor didn’t care about them. As soon as he saw me unhooked, he focused on me and slammed his weapon into my shoulder one more time. It was a critical hit and once more I stumbled to the ground. Wasting no time, he picked me up and dropped me on the nearest hook — upon impact, the spider-like legs appeared once more and before I could react, pierced me right in the chest. My consciousness slipped, and I felt myself being lifted into the sky before everything went black.

—

I was on an operating table when I woke up who knows how much later. Crude, old belts held me down by my wrists and ankles, and lights shone harshly down on me. Fear instantly settled in as I tried to escape my bindings, but they were wrapped around me tightly.  
Frantically looking around for any means of help, my eyes settled on the surgery table placed right next to my head. Several tools were strewn across it, some surgical, but also those meant for other things, like clamps and hammers.  
I tugged harder at my constraints and a laugh sounded from above me. Now blocking the surgical lights, the Doctor’s head hung over my own, his stare stirring the panic inside me. By any means necessary, I had to get out of here. I shot my head up to meet his, a sickening crack alerting me that I headbutted his nose. The sound coming from him was filled with surprise and anger, and he reciprocated by grabbing my skull and shocking me from the head up.  
My scream made him cackle once more and he grabbed one of the smaller blades, slicing a few shallow cuts in my arm. What a time to leave my sweater back at camp.  
I struggled again and he clacked his tongue in disapproval, pushing my head down on the table.  
He belted up my head too and switched the blade for one of the clamps lying around.

That’s when I learned; the only way to leave was on their terms, and they were not done with me just yet.

—

I was driven in and out of consciousness, the pain too much to handle.  
When I opened my eyes again, the fear of whatever they’d thought of now left me immobilized for a few fleeting seconds, but then I noticed that the lights above me were turned off, and the belts holding me had been undone.  
Moving proved a tough challenge, no matter how much I desired escape. Half of me was numb, the other was screaming in pain.  
Sobbing loudly, I limped towards the exit.

—

Finding the light between the trees towards the bonfire had never seemed so sweet. My sobbing had died down to pitiful groaning, my throat dry of crying and screaming. There was no one around searching for food, and I felt despair build up in me.  
Please let anybody be at the fire.

Bill was the first to notice me, running up to catch me as I fell in relief to see I wasn’t alone anymore.

“This way. You’re gonna be fine.” He led my towards the fire as I clung to his jacket, barely making an effort to walk on my own feet. My shoulders shook hard as I cried with no sound, adding more to the pain but being unable to stop it.

“Here, I got something for ya.” Bill pulled away and conjured a bottle of pills, popping a few and handing them to me with a bottle of water.  
It took a few tries but after a bit I was able to swallow the pills and calm down.  
“Take it easy kid, we’re gonna get you back on your feet.”  
At that, Jake took over and started cleaning up the obvious areas, starting with my arms. A thousand tiny cuts stung where the bruises didn’t reach, the muscles underneath the skin stiff and painful.  
I watched him work quietly when a group of survivors returned from the trials.  
My heart swelled at seeing them, but I stayed put in fear of hurting myself more by moving.

A familiar sweater rested on Dwight’s shoulders as he sat down next to me, taking over the damp cloth from the saboteur. His lips twitched as he smiled and dabbed at the dirt on my head. A small bruise had swelled up from breaking the Doctor’s nose and I felt a bit of pride thinking back on it. They’d done a lot of awful stuff and I felt like shit, but they did not break me.

I closed my eyes, letting Dwight clean me up as I prepared my throat to speak.  
“Thanks for keeping that warm for me.” My voice was hoarse as I tried at normal conversation. “Heh.” he breathed a hollow laugh, but didn’t initiate any further.  
My eyelids felt heavy but I forced them to open again, just in time to see Dwight closing in on me and draping my vest across my shoulders.

“Hell, you get back up quick if it wasn’t an act. How y’really feelin’ kid?”  
Bill’s words cut in harshly at my attempt to make everyone less worried. Caught in the act, tears slid down my face again despite my efforts to act like I’m fine.  
“This place is so fucked up.” My voice cracked as I broke down again, hugging my knees as closely to my chest as I could. Bruised ribs protested at my posture, but all I wanted to do was curl into a ball and hide until I’d feel better.  
“There it is.” Bill put an awkward arm around me for a bit but pulled back when I hissed out upon his touch. Somewhere along the road my neck got nice and bruised, courtesy of the Doctor.  
Someone put a hand on mine, letting it rest there. I sat there for a long time, just sniffling to myself. There was shuffling of feet around and hushed whispers, but the one holding my hand remained all this time. Eventually having to go up for fresh air, I followed the arm to who it belonged to, seeing that it was Dwight who was still sticking around. Funny how it kept on being him to pick me up most every time.

I took in a deep shaky breath and exhaled. “Can.. c-can..” I swallowed hard, trying to find my bearings, “Take a walk with me?”

The nervous leader nodded silently and helped me get up and walking.  
With him acting as support, the walk wasn’t as painful as it would be without, but my breathing still hitched from time to time.  
“Are you sure you don’t want to rest?” Dwight forced me to a halt and I shook my head.  
I tentatively reached for his shoulders and mumbled towards his chest, “Can we stay here for a bit?”  
He got the hint and closed the distance, holding me carefully. At that I wrapped my arms further around him, resting my head in the crook of his neck.  
Patiently he waited for me to figure out what I wanted to do next, but it didn’t come easily.

The thoughts in my mind were mostly memories of this damned place, and for a flash I reminded myself of the time when Dwight held me against a wall to shield me from the Hag. That seemed so long ago now, but the small urge I had back then crept back up as well.  
His warmth and presence were so comfortable and I felt so worn out that I couldn’t stop myself from acting irrationally.

I pulled him down and our lips met. However, the way his body stiffened at the contact, I broke out of my daze and profusely apologized, pushing myself away from him. My movements were too fast and I stumbled to the ground.  
The fall surged another jolt of pain through me and I cried out.

Dwight dropped to his knees immediately, fussing over me. I pulled back from his touch, too embarrassed by my own actions to let him near.  
“Dwight, I — shit.” I shut my eyes tightly, unable to look at him.

He cupped my cheek gently, waiting until I finally had to look at him. His eyes looked to mine and then my lips as he drew closer.  
The kiss was careful and clumsy and ended as soon as it came. A few pecks were all what either of us dared, not knowing for sure what the other one wanted. We rested our foreheads together and I had unknowingly reached for his shirt. Despite how tame it was, I was still breathing hard.

“This is..” Dwight started, and I already felt the heartbreak coming on.  
“A bad idea?” I finished before he could, lowering my hand.  
“Yeah...”  
As I was about to pull away, he held me back, the hand on my jaw not moving.  
“But.. I want to...”

He closed the gap and kissed me again, this time pressing his lips on mine harder.  
Reacting and deepening the kiss, I ran a hand through his hair, emitting a moan from him. A tingle ran down my spine and I gasped for air, my excitement rising to levels I knew I couldn’t satisfy right now but couldn’t help feeling so anyway.  
He moved in closer, licking my lips before going further and finding my tongue.  
This time I moaned and leaned into him, but despite my willingness, neither of us went further than that. Our free hands found each other and our fingers entwined naturally before we broke the kiss and simply embraced each other again.

I was suddenly a lot more willing to give into my tiredness, barely being able to keep my eyes open.  
Dwight brushed away my hair, barely brushing his fingertips over the bruises on my neck. I shuddered at the touch.

“Where else does it hurt?”

I pulled back and wordlessly lifted my shirt enough to show the patches of black and blue on my ribs. With featherlight touches he examined them sadly.

“Anywhere else?”

I shook my head and pulled my shirt down. “Just some scrapes and bruises on my legs and a twisted ankle.”

Dwight nodded, his hand remaining under my shirt, softly teasing my hip. Humming at the sensation, I gave him a peck on the cheek. He grinned sheepishly and kissed me on the lips again, lingering there.  
More than anything I wanted to give into the hunger and cling to the happy feeling, but the pain and fatigue were getting too much.

“I want to rest...” I painstakingly got on my feet and Dwight jumped up to support me. Before he helped me get back he pressed his lips against my forehead.

  
I wasn’t sure if this was a one time snog session to cheer me up or if something more would come out of this, and I was afraid asking would ruin the mood I was in now.

With the leader’s help, we got back to camp where I drifted into a dreamless sleep.


End file.
